DESCRIPTION OF THE PRIOR ART
A conventional single lens reflex camera includes a central portion that forms a mirror box in which a driving mechanism drives the mirror that forms part of the built-in viewfinder optical system. A film loading chamber and a winding chamber are provided in the left and right sides of the camera. The upper part of the camera contains a film winding mechanism as well as a film rewind mechanism. The portion near the central part of the film winding chamber also contains a shutter driving mechanism. The bottom of the camera contains an automatic diaphragm control mechanism. Thus, most of the space of the camera is occupied by mechanisms essential to the operation of the camera. This makes the construction of the camera quite complicated. This is especially so because the release equipment is mechanically engaged with the release button which actuates the quick return mirror and the automatic diaphragm mechanism. Thus the space in the camera needed for this release mechanism is necessarily large while the number of components for this mechanism is also large. This makes the construction all the more complicated. Furthermore, with electromagnetic release equipment, the release device itself is highly sensitive. Thus the device can be driven by a pulse of current from a small power battery capable of being contained in the camera. Several factors produce aging effects such as a reduction in the power of the magnetic attracting force of the electromagnetic equipment. One of these factors is dust. Another is powdered iron which may be distributed in the neighborhood of the release device and adhere to the armature of the magnetic pieces.
Furthermore, if the electromagnetic release device is subject to a magnetic flux component from an external magnetic field, or the magnetic field is induced by the electromagnet built into the camera in such a manner that a disturbing magnetic flux is induced in the magnetic portion, the resulting attractive force of the magnetic piece holding the armature is decreased. This may cause the shutter to be released unintentially. This is also quite disadvantageous.
An object of the present invention is to provide a camera in which the camera mechanisms are composed of units or modules so as to make mounting in the camera easy. Another object of the present invention is to eliminate the aforementioned shortcomings.
Still another object of the invention is to utilize the side portion of the space in the single lens reflex camera body, especially the small parallel space between the bottom plate of the camera body and the frame of the camera body.